Dapping for Trout In Mountain Creeks

Thursday

Oct 4, 2012 at 12:01 AM

After suffering through the dog days of summer, what sounds better than wade-fishing in a cool mountain stream? On vacation near Brevard, N.C., in mid-August, I stepped out of the remote cabin we were staying in early one morning to find a fisherman from Raleigh, N.C., fly fishing in the narrow creek that bordered our backyard.

By DEL MILLIGANTHE LEDGER

After suffering through the dog days of summer, what sounds better than wade-fishing in a cool mountain stream?

On vacation near Brevard, N.C., in mid-August, I stepped out of the remote cabin we were staying in early one morning to find a fisherman from Raleigh, N.C., fly fishing in the narrow creek that bordered our backyard.

Easing along upstream, he said he had released a dozen rainbow trout 6-8 inches long. Size wasn't important, just getting the strike.

Middle-aged, he looked the part, decked out with a fly fishing vest, tan cap and wading boots, using a special technique to cast into the nooks and crannies of a creek no wider than 15 feet.

I was surprised he was catching trout, considering the water was only shin-deep.

But the clear water was chilly, in the upper 50s, gently cascading over and between the rocks.

My wife and I had ventured to the mountains to play golf in a cooler climate, and indeed it was extremely pleasant even during the middle of the day with little humidity and highs of about 80 degrees.

We were at just above 3,000 feet in elevation, about 15 minutes south of Brevard off Highway 276 along East Fork Road. At 1,000 feet higher than Brevard, the air temperature was 5 degrees cooler than in the valley, dropping to about 62 degrees at night and cool enough to turn off the air conditioner and sleep with the windows open. A light jacket felt good at daybreak.

As I stood on the bank watching the angler between the mountain laurel branches, I wished I had taken my ultralight spinning outfit to cast small in-line spinners like a Panther-Martin.

It's a similar game to creek fishing in my stomping grounds of Middle Tennessee, but instead of smallmouth and redeye bass, it's mountain trout in close quarters.

I hadn't given fishing a second thought for this trip, still remembering the time 25-30 years ago when a stern-faced wildlife officer checked my credentials in the Smokies. He didn't write me a citation, but he made it clear that a non-resident needs three or four licenses to wet a line for trout in a national forest.

We were near Caesar's Head, a pinnacle in the Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area along the North Carolina-South Carolina border.

As for the fellow from Raleigh, he was employing a technique he called dapping, casting a tiny fly attached to a strike indicator. With his right arm, he would aim and point the long rod at his precise target between overhanging branches while grabbing the fly with his left hand and pulling it straight back behind his ear, releasing it and letting the whip of the rod tip zip it to its desired location.

Although I didn't see him hook up in the 15 minutes I observed, the creek was begging for another fisherman. I would have been glad to join him.

2013 SOUTHERN OPENS KICK OFF ON TOHO

The 2013 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Open series kicks off the season on the Kissimmee Chain out of Lake Toho in late January.

The three-day tournament is Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 out of Lakefront Park.

The other two Southern Opens are at Douglas Lake in Tennessee April 4-6 and Lake Logan Martin in Alabama May 16-18.

Central Opens will be on the Red River in Louisiana April 25-27; the Arkansas River in Oklahoma Sept. 19-21; and Ross Barnett Reservoir in Mississippi Oct. 17-19.

Northern Opens start June 13-15 on the James River in Virginia, followed by Oneida Lake at Syracuse, N.Y., Aug. 1-3 and Lake Erie out of Sandusky, Ohio, Sept. 12-14.

Tournament winners who compete in all three events qualify for the 2014 Classic.

BASS TOURNAMENTS

Billy Hendren and Richie Upchurch combined for a limit of six bass totaling 28.99 pounds to win the Accent Marine trail's final qualifying tournament Sunday on the Kissimmee Chain out of Camp Mack. Larry West and Kenny Trimble took second with 26.87 pounds. Levi Brown and Lori Brown finished third with 22.91 pounds. Justin Newsome and Brian Watts Jr. placed third with 22.85 pounds, and fifth went to Brian Wical and Matt Hinman with 22.73 pounds. John Strydom and Ian Strydom boated a 9.94-pounder for lunker honors.

Pat and Casey O'Donnell won the Castaways tournament on the south Winter Haven chain out of Lake Cannon Sept. 22 with 15.77 pounds. Alan Thompson finished second with 13.77 pounds. Kenny and Robin Cooke placed third with 11.80 pounds, followed by Johnny Johnson and Cecil Hicks with 10.36 pounds. Ron Terry's 4.77-pounder was tops.

Ray and James Moran won the Sunday Open Series tournament on Lake Hamilton with 15 1/2 pounds, including the biggest bass of 5 pounds, 13 ounces. Mark Murphy and Kurt Eberle finished second with 14 pounds, 10 ounces. Billy and Mike Bechard placed third with 14 pounds.

Dave Bear and Butch Brown won the Ron's Tackle Box evening tournament last Thursday on the south Winter Haven chain with 7 pounds, 6 ounces, most of it on Bear's 5 1/4-pounder. Albert Coffman finished second with 7 pounds, followed by Jimmy Todd with 5 pounds, 14 ounces.

[ Del Milligan's freshwater fishing column appears Thursdays in The Ledger. He can be reached at del.milligan@theledger.com or 863-802-7555. Milligan's blog, Central Florida Fishology, can be found at theledger.com home page. ]

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